INSTITUTE BRIEF
Volume 15, Number 34
December 2008
“The Most Trusted Man in America”
By Doug Stout
Politicians routinely dominate the list of today’s most admired people. They reach a small plurality,
largely through the support of their most ardent partisan supporters.
There is usually no real consensus. In 2000 the Gallup Poll had President Bill Clinton tied with Pope
John Paul II for first place. However, each garnered only 6% of the vote. One third of Americans in that
poll could not come up with the name of any man they admired the most. First among admired women in
the same poll was Hillary Clinton at 19%, far eclipsing the others mentioned. Reverend Billy Graham set
the record by making the top ten list 43 times.1 There were no journalists mentioned in either list.
In 2006, it was President George W. Bush, followed by former Presidents Clinton and Carter. On the
women’s side it was Hillary Clinton, followed by Oprah Winfrey and Condoleezza Rice.2 No reporters
or journalists were in contention. In a 1972 poll, the most trusted man in America was a journalist. Can
you even imagine that being the result today? Sadly, we seldom even use the word “trust” when talking
of the personalities that dominate our news media. They tend to be partisan entertainers.
Earlier this year, a Rasmussen Report showed that 69% of Americans believed reporters were trying to
help the Presidential candidate they favored. Fifty percent of Americans thought most reporters were trying to help Senator Obama win. Eleven percent said they believed that most reporters were trying to help
Senator McCain become President.3
Jim Lehrer, the generally well respected host of The News Hour on PBS, is usually believed by most political leaders to provide an impartial forum. However, before the Presidential debates only 38% of Americans said they had a favorable view of Jim Lehrer, 25% viewed him unfavorably, and 36% didn’t know
who he was…and 45% couldn’t identify what network he was on.4 His hour-long, in-depth, nightly news
show on public television is not widely watched.
We are experiencing not only the polarization of the American political system, but the polarization and
balkanization of American media. Does what we believe determine what we watch…or does what we
watch help determine what we believe? Both are probably true to some extent. In August, 87% of Fox
News watchers indicated they planned to vote for Senator McCain, while 65% of CNN watchers were
voting for Senator Obama.5 We wonder why our Congress cannot get along? One reason is that there is
no common point of reference to begin a serious discussion; their perspectives are shaped by very different “versions” of the news…as are those of their most ardent supporters.
In an unholy alliance, Democrats and Republicans have worked together to gerrymander Congressional
voting districts across the country. They have put as many Republicans as possible into safe districts
and as many Democrats as possible into safe districts, making incumbents of both parties safer and the
“Republican seats” very Republican and the “Democratic seats” very Democratic. Members of Congress
then do not have to worry what voters of the other party think of them, which makes them more extreme
A Publication of: Public Interest Institute at Iowa Wesleyan College
600 North Jackson Street, Mt. Pleasant, Iowa 52641-1328
If you wish to support our efforts, please donate by sending a check to us at the above address.
PII is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization and all contributions are tax deductible.
E-Mail: [email protected]
Website: www.limitedgovernment.org Phone: 319-385-3462 Fax: 319-385-3799
Volume 15, Number 34
December 2008
on both ends of the political spectrum. It is not surprising that this political system is creating very few
statesmen in either party. (To our credit, Iowa has a model system of reapportionment. It is done statistically by a non-partisan method which is designed to meet demographic guidelines and not partisan objectives.)
In our Red State – Blue State America…we are developing Red and Blue media, so that we can all safely
listen to only the views we already agree with and increase the intensity of the polarization on both sides
of the political aisle. We are headed down a dangerous path where we can no longer find the common
ground to even discuss serious issues.
Oh, that “most trusted man in America” in 1972? Walter Cronkite.6 For those of you under the age of
45, he was the anchor man for CBS Evening News. “And this accolade came at the height of the turbulent 1960s and 1970s. In those years of anger and division, Americans simply believed that Walter
Cronkite would not knowingly deceive them… His integrity and clear judgment gave him tremendous
authority, remarkably, with the old and the young, the conservative and the liberal.”7
Long after he signed off with his trademark “And that is the way it is, Friday, March 6, 1981…Good
night,”8 America still remembers him as the voice of the news. Decades later, Mr. Cronkite has spoken
out on issues of importance and has not always presented a point of view with which I agree. But while
on the anchor desk, he was the paragon of integrity. On the occasions he expressed his opinions, it was
done with the straightforward style he epitomized, and no one doubted the sincerity of his views. You
didn’t always have to agree with Walter Cronkite, but the person who did not “trust” him was hard to find
anywhere on the political spectrum. “He seemed to me incorruptible, in a profession that was easily corruptible,” said Director Sidney Lumet. “It was all Cronkite wanted – and he achieved it.”9
Over the years the media has come to play to the “crowd,” responding to the viewer’s worst instincts or
seeking to manipulate them through biased reporting to conform to their ideas of what the people should
think. The temporary elevation of Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews…hatchet men of the liberal
agenda…to the anchor desk of MSNBC showed how far we have descended from the days of Walter
Cronkite. As I write this on Election Day, I long for the day when the anchor desks report election results
not with a scowl or a smile, but with the solemn dignity that the occasion deserves. As an American, I
long for the day when all Americans respect the Presidency…both the person who will hold it for 77 more
days and the person who will replace him in January…and hope with him that he will be granted the wisdom and the strength to guide us into our common future. And at the end of the day we will hear, ”And
that is the way it is Tuesday, November 4, 2008...Good night.”
Frank Newport, “Little Consensus on Most Admired Man This Year, But Hillary Clinton is Clearly Most Admired Woman,” Gallup News
Service, December 29, 2000. <http://www.adherents.com/misc/poll_GallupAdmired.html> (November 4, 2008).
2
Bill O’Reilly, “The Most Admired People of the Year…,” Fox News, January 4, 2006, < http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,180550,00.
html> (November 4, 2008).
3
“Most Voters say Debate Moderators are Biased”, Rasmussen Reports, September 23, 2008, <http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_20082/2008_presidential_election/most_voters_say_debate_moderators_are_biased> (November 4, 2008).
4
Ibid.
5
“News You Watch Says a Lot About How You’ll Vote,” Rasmussen Reports, August 6, 2008, <http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_20082/2008_presidential_election/news_you_watch_says_a_lot_about_how_you_ll_vote> (November 4, 2008).
6
“American Masters – Walter Cronkite,” Leslie Clark, co-producer, Public Broadcasting System, July 26, 2006, <http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/database/cronkite_w.html> (November 4, 2008).
7
Ibid.
8
Ibid.
1
Ibid.
9
Doug Stout is a Research Analyst with Public Interest Institute.
Permission to reprint or copy in whole or part is granted, provided a version of this credit line is used:
"Reprinted by permission from INSTITUTE BRIEF, a publication of Public Interest Institute."
The views expressed in this publication are those of the author and not necessarily those of
Public Interest Institute. They are brought to you in the interest of a better-informed citizenry.